Who cares for Normal?
by Seigi no Chikara
Summary: When being bizarre becomes a way of life, it becomes hard to predict what will happen next. Now, our two favorite loud, bickering idiots must learn to live with adult life. Will something happen? Or will it all go up in flames?
1. Introduction

**Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Nor any of its characters. All rights and works belong to Amano Akira. **

We seldom see what's right under our noses, atleast not until it blows up in our faces and we face the threat of losing something precious forever.

Time – 01:00 a.m

It was a flawless night. A full moon brightly giving way to lost strangers, wind caressing the trees and the temperature ideal enough to make you want to abandon the artificial comforts of your home and return to nature. All in all, perfect. However, one particular scene occurring in the confines of an apartment would lay distress to this perfect night. The scene of a raven haired woman, bustling and shuffling around in her bed, seemingly under great anguish.

Yes, to Miura Haru, 21 years of age and a part of one of the most fearsome Mafia families, this particular night was far from perfect. Why, you ask? That would be a good question. Seeing as the person in question herself did not know the reason for her discomfort. There, from the volatile fusion of a peaceful night and a conflicting dream, escaped a small whisper,

"_Damn you, you explosive bastard. "_

_ _.__

**Time – 01:01 a.m**

"The fuck?"

These words rang out in the large room, disturbing the peace and calm of the night. A certain foul-mouthed boy got off the floor where he had landed and rubbed his head, eyes a mixture of annoyance, confusion and sleep. He had been sleeping contently when he was rudely awoken by his head hitting the marble floor.

"Damn, I should have listened to the Tenth and gotten the floors carpeted. Fuck that, how'd I fall off the bed in the first place?"

Again, a good question. For he owned a king sized bed (he didn't need it but owning a queen sized bed was a blow to his pride) and as a principle, didn't toss or turn. This caused a signal to go off in his head that rekindled a few memories that he didn't know he still had. Memories of his mother telling him, that when people said something unpleasant about you in your sleep, you would roll off and hit your head. As a child, he didn't know whether his mother was telling him the truth or not but as he grew older he shrugged it off as some of the crap parents told their children to make them behave, such as the Boogeyman or what have you.

"Could it be?..."

"Oh fuck it. It doesn't matter anyway. Anyone who has a problem can say it to my face. I'll roast anyone who does. Nothing to lose sleep over. "

But yet, even as he lay back down to plunge into a peaceful slumber, he was uncertain. Because despite his bad-ass i-don't-give-a-shit demeanor, he was just a smidge superstitious. So with this shred of uncertainty nagging at him, he drifted into sleep. But what he didn't know is that that one minute had marked the beginning of something that would alter his very soul.

Authors Note: Thank you for reading. I apologize for it being so short. Constructive criticism is very much welcomed.


	2. Well, that's new

**Author's Note: Constructive criticism is welcomed.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Nor any of its characters. All rights and works belong to Amano Akira. **

It had started out as a normal day. Or whatever normal meant in the house of Vongola. Everyone had woken up bright and refreshed to a dazzling sun. Haru however, had woken up feeling oddly irritated. True to her name though, her heart-shaped face broke into a huge grin on laying her eyes upon the sun shining proudly outside, all worries and irritation gone without leaving a trace.

It reminded her of her middle school days, when she would wake up in her house in Namimori where the sun would shine through her curtain-less windows. After all, Haru loved the sun. So why on earth would she mar the perfection with something as silly as curtains?

She would wake up whistling the tune whose origin she couldn't hope to remember, brush, complete her daily ablutions, and get dressed in her Midori High uniform. She would then run down to greet her drowsy parents who would, as usual, stare at her with dazed confusion and amazement wondering for the millionth time how anyone could be so cheerful so early in the morning. But Haru was the Spring after all. Nothing stopped her from bursting through.

She would then eat her breakfast at the speed of a bullet train, grab her bag and run out of the house like the devil was after her. After that, came the favorite part of her morning routine. The run to her beloved Tsuna-san's house. She would see him being bullied by Reborn or taking care of Lambo or fainting from the damage being done to his house, again. And she would smile a smile that came directly from her heart. Then she would fight with an annoying, violent, foul-mouthed jerk, alerting the entire street of their presence. After which, Tsuna-san would stop them, Yamamoto-kun would laugh and thus get attacked by said jerk, Bianchi would come out, the jerk would faint and Yamamoto-kun would laugh yet again. And then, she would laugh too. This was their bizarre morning routine. A routine they didn't even realize they depended on.

How times had changed since then. They were all adults now, living a life that she had never even dreamt of having. They were now living in a mansion in Italy as the Vongola Famiglia, The Tenth Generation.

They had been 18 years of age when Reborn's efforts had finally paid off and Tsuna-kun had accepted the title of the Tenth Boss of the Vongola, formally anyway. Everyone had had different reactions. Reborn was smug, Dynamite Dodo had burst into applause, Yamamoto-kun had grinned, Tsuna-kun's parents were bursting with pride, Hibari-san indifferent (but had secretly smiled), Ryohei-san had chanted a chorus that was too extreme for some people, Lambo and I-pin had cheered, Kyoko-chan and Haru had tears in their eyes and Bianchi, Dino-san and all of the Family's friends had said one word; "Finally".

And Tsuna-kun himself? Well, he had sweatdropped.

The Ninth had waited till their High School graduation to hold the Inheritance Ceremony. Those had been hectic days. Kyoko-chan and Haru had helped with the preparations and the others got the job of making sure Lambo didn't mess anything up; as he was in his cheeky phase. There was one incident that Lambo had caused, but an explosion, a barrage of punches and a fuming, cursing half-Italian later, it was fixed. And then it was smooth sailing.

Following the ceremony, the entire Vongola Famiglia had moved to Italy. This meant of course, Tsuna-kun, the guardians, the Kokuyo Gang, Bianchi and I-pin. However, Kyoko-chan and Haru had moved with them too. When Kyoko-chan and her had found out about the boys' migration plans, they were deeply saddened to the point of tears , to which the boys looked at them with furrowed brows and said all at once;

"Why the hell are you two crying? You're coming aren't you?"

That was probably one of the only times that they would all say the same thing. At the same time. Even Hibari-san was there. He had warmed up to the family a bit. A bit. To say that they were shocked would be an understatement to the point of ridiculousness. But the joy that was felt that day, can never be explained either.

And that is how it all came to be. That was three years ago. Since then they had all eased into their respective roles in the Vongola family.

SMACK!

"Hahiii…..That hurt…"

Haru's palm had connected with her forehead resulting in a resounding smack when she realized she had wasted 15 minutes in the flashback. She wasted no further time and got dressed quickly and made her way to the living room to meet up with the rest.

It was a Sunday so people were off duty. Officially anyway. Due to this, Haru had abandoned her more formal clothes for a white top and a pair of simple beige shorts.

Walking into the living room, she realized it was empty. This actually was odd seeing as Sunday was the day everyone gathered in the morning to discuss what happened during the week. In a casual sort of way. Even the Kokuyo Gang visited them. Shrugging it off, she walked into the kitchen to look for a snack realizing her tummy was trying to kill her from the inside if she didn't eat something.

And then, it all went to hell. Fancy who she should run into first on such a lovely morning; Gokudera Hayato a.k.a the loud, annoying, foul-mouthed ape who called her names and frustrated her to no end. But over the years, she had learnt to deal with him.

But today for some reason, he angered her more. His very sight made rage boil up inside her with such intensity, that she surprised herself. All of her former irritation came back in one crashing wave and exploded inside her. But amidst the anger and irritation, was a touch of something else. Something she didn't quite understand. It was an odd feeling in her stomach that unsettled her and made her heart beat faster.

'Get a grip over yourself Miura.'

"Great. And here I thought I was having a good day." She started.

A moment of silence. Brown met green. Her eyes widened.

'Did I imagine that?'

Gokudera Hayato was not having a good day. In fact, he was having one of the worst days imaginable. He had woken up, sullen and annoyed and in an awful mood whose root he couldn't identify. And for some strange unknown reason, his head hurt. As if he had hit it somewhere. He had gone around the house searching for the Tenth, but funnily enough, hadn't been able to find him anywhere. And it wasn't just him. The baseball freak, lawn-head, Kyoko and the rest were gone too. Hibari hadn't shown up either. He didn't live in the Vongola Mansion with the rest of them, but rather close.

So, with nothing else to do, he walked into the kitchen, made himself a snack and sat down at the dining table. Despite being hungry, he couldn't eat. Something plagued his mind still. The reason for his irritation. Now everyone knew him as a short tempered boy, but over the past years, he had changed. He had become not calmer, but more controlled. So, naturally he was determined to find out what was bugging him.

…

'Argh! I can't figure it out! What the hell is wrong with me?!'

"Great. And here I thought that I was having a good day."

He cursed under his breath. Of course. Just what he needed. She had to show up at that very moment.

His head snapped towards the direction of the voice, a retort ready on his tongue.

Time stopped. Fists clenched. Two pairs of eyes widened. Then suddenly, he turned away from her, breath coming out in short pants.

He opened his mouth -

"Tadaima!"

Eight voices simultaneously resounded in the house, reverberating of the walls and breaking the almost tangible silence in the kitchen.

Gokudera and Haru were almost painfully snapped out of their reverie. They both fumbled and more or less ran out of the kitchen, nearly knocking each other down. They each turned in opposite directions choosing a different path to the living room. Haru cupped her face with both her hands, Gokudera cursed and ran a hand through his hair, one thought dominating both their minds-

'_Why does my face feel so hot?'_

The snack remained untouched.

__.__

(Gokudera's P.O.V)

'What the hell was that? My stomach feels all weird. I wonder what it was. Probably just the annoying woman's stupidity trying to claim my health. Nothing important. '

He heard the Tenth and the rest call out to him so naturally he followed the voices to the living room. There he found everyone sitting and talking animatedly about something that involved the words 'invites' and 'cake'. Oh that's right. The baseball freak's birthday was tomorrow. So, obviously, the Vongola were throwing a gargantuan party to celebrate the event.

"Hayato-kun! There you are! Good morning."

At these words, his face broke into a huge grin, all previous worries forgotten.

"Good Morning Tenth! I looked for you in the morning to give the week's report but no one seemed to be home. Was there an errand to be run? Did something happen?! Was there an emergency mission?!"

Panic welled inside him.

'I'm such an idiot! I should have checked with the Tenth last night! He's had to trouble himself because of my incompetence! What if he had needed my help?! What if something had happened! I must find a way to earn his forgiveness.'

"You could have told me! I could have taken care of it! After all, I am-

"No no. Calm down Hayato-kun. We had simply gone out shopping for tomorrow's party and then a morning stroll" said a flustered Tsuna holding his hands up in the air so as to calm the now hyper storm guardian.

"Oh."

'Thank God. That fool. Making the Tenth run around for his idiotic party. What was he thinking? Just wait till I get my hands on him lat-"

"Hayato-kun? Hayato-kun!"

"Yes Tenth! I apologize for being so distracted! I assure you, you have my full attention!"

"Relax Hayato-kun. I was just saying that we were gonna call you, and Haru too! But both of you seemed so fast asleep that we didn't want to disturb you."

"Tsuna-kun is so considerate! But he should have woken up Haru! Haru wanted to go with all of you! Though its good that bomber boy wasn't there. He would have just gotten in your way."

His eyebrow twitched.

"What did you say, you stupid woman?!"

"Exactly what you heard! And don't call Haru that! Haru is not stupid!"

"You are the living embodiment of stupidity! Your name should be equated with stupidity!"

"HAHI! Take that back!

"There you go with your idiotic 'Hahi'! Can't you ever say something that doesn't drip with stupidity?!"

"Haru will say whatever she wants! If you don't want to listen then cover your ears with one of your tentacles, Octopus Head!"

"You take that back, you cosplay-obsessed cake maniac!"

It was at this point that the two of them realized that they were face to face, having taken a step ahead with each angry retort. He turned away from her, his heartbeat thundering in his ears.

'Fuck. Too close. What's wrong with me today? Maybe I caught a fever from one of the idiots during a mission. It seems the stupid woman is making it worse.'

"Che, trying to talk sense into you is a waste of time."

"Oh yes, because people are lining up to talk to you."

He started. That was a new one. She was _smirking, _the nerve of the devil woman. Then a thought entered his mind. One that deeply pleased him.

"No." he admitted. "But you are. What does that make you?"

Her eyes widened and he heard a sharp intake of breath.

'Ha. Gotcha.' A smug and victorious smirk spread across his face. He turned to walk away when he heard one single word:

"Charitable."

The smirk was smacked off his face as he whipped his head around to see her walking towards Kyoko with her back toward him. Granted, she had become a lot more mature over the years but this boost in confidence surprised, and as much as he hated to admit it, impressed him.

'Is that really her?'

The eight others in the room sighed.

'_Those two never grow up.'_

**Author's Note: I hope you guys liked it. Review please if you get the chance. I thank you for reading.**


	3. Mood swings can be dangerous for health

**Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! or any of its characters. All rights and works belong to Amano Akira.**

The morning of April 24th arrived posed as a jack-in-the-box, appearing all nice and innocent only to unleash a creepy clown that seemed to want to punch you in the face.

The commotion within the Vongola mansion could be heard from miles away. It won't be that hard to guess why. That's right, it was party day. Thus, preparations were in full swing.

Everyone had been given a task to do. The boys were made to run errands and do the heavy lifting, Lambo and I-Pin had the job of blowing balloons, while the girls had taken it upon themselves to make the giant cake which was to be in the form of a sword and baseball bat laid out to form an 'X', to signify the Vongola Tenth Generation. Hibari and Reborn had been given the pleasurable task of making sure no one stepped out of line and by special request, Bianchi was asked to take the birthday boy out of the house so as to maintain some semblance of surprise. This was actually done as an emergency evasive as the boys had threatened to boycott the party if Bianchi had even stepped inside the kitchen. Yamamoto had resisted, but on seeing Kyoko's pleading look, Haru's glare and Reborn's gun that had appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, he had silently complied.

However, seeing as the party was tonight, the pile of things that needed to be done kept increasing. Luckily, the Shimon family, the Vongola's closest allies and friends, came to their rescue. With the magnitude of preparations being done it would seem like they were throwing a party for a king. No one was stupid enough to think that it would be smooth sailing, especially since a certain cow was involved. And of course, they were right.

"Of course the idiot cow will screw up. When does he not?" Reborn said while in the process of kicking Tsuna for dropping a stack of plates. "It's obviously a defect caused by having a mass of fudge as a brain."

"Too-oleratee…."

"Reborn! That was mean!"

"Huh? Did you say something No-Good Tsuna?"

"No SIR!" came the response from a terrified Tsuna waving his hands in the air, frantically trying to ward off the two revolvers that were pointed straight at him.

"Good. I thought so."

"BURN IN HELL, REBORN!"

Following this war cry, Lambo shot a cannonball toward the hitman who dodged it with ease. The cannonball continued on its trajectory though, at the end point of which were Kaoru, Ryohei, Tsuna and Enma who, unfortunately, just happened to be carrying an enormous speaker at that very moment. And with their hands occupied, they couldn't do jack to stop it. Four different voices cried out, followed by a massive explosion. A volley of shouts sounded after that, all blended together in such a confusing and not to mention, loud mess that it was Impossible to tell which was whose.

Inside the kitchen, two pairs of fists clenched; a dark aura emanating from one while a teeth-grinding sound coming from the other. The one other person in the room shrank back, her one good eye widening with terror at the sight in front of her.

'Oh my…'

Meanwhile, in the hall, an oblivious Lambo was rolling on the floor, laughing at the scene in front of him, that is, until two shadows sleeked up from behind encasing him in their depths. Lambo froze on the spot, petrified.

"_Lambo_."

Said person laughed nervously. "Hii-bari, Aaa-del-heei-id, did soo-mmethii-ing haa-penn?

Hibird chirped. Two sets of lips grinned evilly.

"GUUPYAAAAAAA!"

"See. Told you. Fudge."

"Serves him right. Stupid cow, always coming in th-

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU GUYS DOING?!"

Everyone turned their heads to the direction of the entrance and saw a never-before-seen-sight, not just Haru, but Kyoko too standing there, pure anger radiating from every pore on their respective bodies. Everyone simultaneously dropped whatever they were holding in shock; even Hibari dropped his tonfas in a moment of bewilderment. In the entire time they'd known her, they had never seen Kyoko angry; not even Ryohei. And they had definitely never seen her THAT angry. To that effect, Haru also looked particularly frightening, even Gokudera had taken a step back.

So, needless to say, the two of them together in that mode were absolutely terrifying. They looked ready to kill. Literally.

Ryohei laughed. "You two are scary to the extreme!. Actually what hap- "

A hand came up in the air. "Nii-chan. Don't say a word." Kyoko cut him off with an expression that immediately shut him up.

Gokudera was the first to recover. "Hahahaha. You're so hopeless lawn hea-

"Shut up." This time, it was Haru who spoke. "Not another word out of you."

Gokudera's eyes widened and then narrowed. "What did you-?!"

"Are you deaf?"

Everyone could plainly hear the danger in her voice. But Gokudera being Gokudera was too stubborn to notice it.

"What the fuck makes you think I'd actua-"Gokudera yelped and jumped sideways as a plate whizzed past him and hit the wall behind.

"I thought I told you to shut up."

"I-"

"You will. Or this time, I'll aim at you and not the wall."

The Shimon Family silently made a mental note that they would remember for ages; never anger the Vongola women.

"Now, who did this?" they spoke in unison, the danger in their voices as clear as day.

A loud wailing suddenly filled the room. The duo walked towards the sound, the crowd parting to give them way. When they closed in, it turned out to be Lambo sitting on the floor, crying his eyes out.

"It was Lambo-san! Lambo is sorry! Please don't be mad at Lambo! Lambo didn't want to upset Kyoko-nee and Haru-nee!" the little cow cried at the top of his voice, tears and snot mixing together.

The two girls in question's eyes softened. Lambo always went in extreme third-person mode when he was upset.

"Shhh. It's okay Lambo. We're not mad at you." Kyoko softly crooned while wiping his face with her handkerchief.

Lambo raised his head with hopeful eyes. "Really?! You're not mad at Lambo?! Not even Haru-nee?!"

"Of course not! I couldn't possibly be mad at Lambo! And the plate thing was only for Stupidera." Haru chirped with a smile on her face.

"Yay! Kyoko-nee and Haru-nee aren't angry with Lambo!"

"Hey Lambo, would you like to sit with us in the kitchen? You can finish blowing the balloons there! And you can show it to us too!"

"Yes Yes Yes! Lambo wants to sit in the kitchen with Kyoko-nee, Haru-nee and Chrome-nee!" Lambo said happily.

The three of them got off the ground and begun walking towards the kitchen; Lambo walking in the middle, holding their hands. The onlookers smiled softly watching the scene unfold. All except for one person of course.

"Hey! Wait a second! Why doesn't he get a plate to the head After all, he's the one who- ?!"

This time, it was a vase that flew at him.

"Has one of your screws gone loose?! That could have hit- !"

"If you let yourself get hit with something that wasn't even aimed at you, you'd be the crappiest guardian ever. Besides, I told you to shut up."

"Why would I-"

"Do you want one more?"

"…."

"That's why."

"And if either of us hears another word coming from either of you before the preparation is done, you'll be sorry. To the extreme. Isn't that right Nii-chan?"

Their faces paled. Kyoko was just as scary as Haru.

"I-pin-chan! You can come along with us too!"

Right on cue, I-pin happily bounded towards them with the balloon packets. Holding Chrome's hand, they followed the other three into the kitchen.

"Devil wom-"

Three pair of hands slapped his mouth, muffling the sound.

'What the fuck?! Will no one let me finish a sentence today?!'

"_SHHHH!"_

After that, work went on like a well-oiled machine.

_._

"Something wrong Yamamoto-kun?' Bianchi asked the younger boy.

Yamamoto shook his head, his trademark grin in place.

"No no! I was just thinking about the others. I wonder if they're having fun.

_._

It was evening by the time Yamamoto and Bianchi returned from their trip, nearly time for the party to start. At first they wondered if they had entered the wrong house, because surely, the house of Vongola couldn't be _silent._

A gunshot. Panic. "Reborn!" A sigh of relief.

Yamamoto grabbed the door handle and was about to turn it when a large buzzer sounded.

Both Yamamoto and Bianchi flinched and covered their ears, "What in the name of Primo is that?!"

"How should I know?!"

Just as quick as it started, the buzzer stopped. A silhouette of a tall man could be seen, emerging from the shadows. One that looked oddly familiar.

"Giannini!"

"Hello Bianchi-san, Yamamoto-san. Good evening to you."

"What was that sound?!"

He snickered. "Oh that. That was the custom alert buzzer I had installed specifically for today. Haru-chan….uhm… asked me to do it so you wouldn't walk in and see the decorations before the party. It's got your fingerprints recorded Yamamoto-san! So if you were to open it like you did just now, it would alert everybody. Neat isn't it?"

True to that statement, Ryohei and Tsuna rushed out the door and towards Yamamoto.

"That was loud, to the extreme!"

"Nii-chan, so are you. Calm down. Yamamoto-kun! Bianchi! You're back!"

Yamamoto grinned and waved towards the two. "Hey Tsuna! What are you two doing out here?"

"Oh it's our duty to make sure you don't come in before the party starts. Originally, Hayato-kun and I were supposed to do it but he's currently off sulking somewhere so I got Nii-chan to come instead."

"Sulking? Why?"

"Uh….long story. Later. Uh, Bianchi, Chrome asked you to join them in Kyoko-chan's room. They're all getting dressed there and they wanted your help with something."

"Roger that. But why are you blushing?"

"Huh?! I'm not blushing!"

"You boys….so foolish."

With that, she walked off. Yamamoto nudged Tsuna playfully. "Tsuna you dog you! What were you thinking about huh huh? Its Kyoko isn't it?"

"Ya-Yamamoto-kun! No no no! Nothing like that!"

Tsuna was flailing his hands in the air nervously when he felt a dark aura rising from behind him.

"Sawada…." Came a whisper laced with danger.

"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Nii-chan!"

"That's my sister, you perv. Even though you two are dating, it's beyond shameless to have those kinds of thoughts in front of me!"

"NOOOOOOOO! I WASN'T THINKING ANYTHING LIKE THAT, I SWEAR!"

Echoes of laughing and yelling floated down the hallway.

Meanwhile, In Kyoko's room,

"Acchoo!"

"What's wrong Kyoko-chan? Are you feeling unwell?"

"No no. Probably just a rogue sneeze."

"Or maybe someone's thinking of you. Ne, I bet it's Tsuna-kun!" Haru said while grinning cheekily.

"Haru-chan! I'm sure it's nothing." Kyoko blurted while blushing.

"Well, I did just leave him blushing like an idiot. Just like you are doing right now." Three heads turned around towards the direction of the voice.

"Bianchi-san!"

She smiled. "Hey, girls. Everything go okay?"

There was a pause. Chrome was the first to speak. "Well, there was a bit of a problem but it was handled. Very nicely too, might I add."

Haru and Kyoko bowed. "Our pleasure."

Chrome laughed.

'Well, atleast we moved off the topic of Tsu-kun and me.' Kyoko sighed with relief. She smiled. 'Tsu-kun….'

"Ne, Kyoko-chan?" Chrome's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Huh? What?"

"I was saying that Haru-chan was a little extreme towards Gokudera-san earlier. Don't you agree?"

"Oh please. He deserved it. Ape."

Despite the callous nature of those words, Haru turned around to hide her face from everyone.

'My face is all hot again! Why is this happening? And my stomach feels weird again.'

Kyoko and Bianchi smiled. They knew exactly why. But they held their tongues.

'Poor Haru-chan. She doesn't even realize what she feels. I hope she wakes up and sees it soon.' Kyoko thought to herself, looking at Haru in the manner an older sister would, almost protective.

'That stupid brother of mine better hear his heart soon. And hers too. For both of their sakes.'

_._

The party had been a huge success. Everyone had shown up; the Shimon Family, Dino and the Cavallone Family, The Ninth and the Varia, every member of the Cedef, the Tenth's parents, the Millefiore, The ex-Arcobalenos, a few members of the Bovino family, even the Kokuyo gang. Longchamp had also shown up with another one of his weird girlfriends by his side. The other allied families had also made an appearance, though not stayed very long. There were games, performances and another one of Reborn's famous "Vongola Games" which, with the amount of danger involved, were hardly games. Nevertheless, with the crowd gathered there, danger and thrill were required to entertain.

Yamamoto's entry had sparked a whole barrage of hoorays and woohoos that easily crossed into the 'Way too loud' category. His face exploded into a huge grin on seeing the decorations that had been done for him. Swirls of blue satin ribbons had been put up all around the room, there were two huge speakers on both ends and food and drinks could be found in every corner of the room except for one, where an 8-foot tall stack of presents happily rested. Instead of a chandelier, thousands of bulbs hung from the ceiling, illuminating the room. On closer inspection however, he saw that they weren't bulbs but actually glass containers with a small flame inside each of them (made possible by a box weapon). These containers were in a number of shapes; swords, baseballs, swallows, baseball bats, dogs, a pitcher's glove, even sushi. Everything that Yamamoto held dear to him. And right in the center, and the biggest of them all, was a container in the shape of him and his father, both holding wooden swords. It was the only picture of his father that he owned, his prized possession. But he had never shown it to anyone. Inside it glowed a blue flame.

He gasped when his eyes fell on it.

"How?" he breathed with his wide.

"It wasn't us. You'll have to ask Haru that question." Reborn responded, his voice soft.

"Thank You, everyone. Honestly, thank you!" his eyes shone with happiness.

"Don't be silly Yamamoto-kun. It's our pleasure." Tsuna said with a warm smile on his face.

"Hahahahahaha! It was fun, to the extreme! Except for the scary parts of course! Gahahahahahaha!"

"Huh? What scary parts?" Yamamoto asked in bewilderment.

"It's part of the long story I told you about."

"Hahahaha, Sounds interesting."

'_You have no idea_…..'

…

"Finally! No more balloons! Lambo-san is tired!"

"Che, you didn't even do anything, stupid cow. Other then get in others' way."

"Hayato-kun, let's not go starting anything now. We don't want to get the girls angry again." Tsuna said nervously, turning his head side to side to see if anyone had heard him. Everyone nodded in agreement. Nobody wanted to witness that again, let alone be the instigator.

The right hand man snorted. "Of course, Tenth. As you say."

Inside, Gokudera was fuming. 'That devil woman! Who does she think she is?! Ordering people around like that! Not to mention, throwing things at me! Those hours teaching her at the gun range sure came back to bite me in the ass. Just wait, once I get my hands on her I'll-'.

"Happy Birthday Yamamoto-kun!" Three feminine voices rang out in the hall, resounding off the wall and grabbing everyone's attention. Heads turned to take in a scene that was truly worthy of being deemed beautiful. Chrome, Haru and Kyoko walked towards the birthday boy in one row, the grins on their faces easily beating his. The hall had fallen silent as a tribute to the radiance the Vongola beauties emitted, welcoming them, in awe of their presence.

"Thanks you three! Where have you been for so long?"

"Putting the finishing touches."

Yamamoto looked at Chrome quizzically. "On what?"

"Oh you'll see." Kyoko replied, winking.

"But before that….." With her hands on her hips, Haru drew in a breath, opened her mouth and spoke, "Hey why is everything so quiet? This is a party right!"

"AAAAYYYEEE!"

And with that, the ball began rolling again.

Gokudera was speechless. The minute the girls had walked into the room, he had turned into a breathing statue. He had completely lost control over his eyes, heart and sweat glands. His green orbs followed person only. To him, she had always been the un-feminine, loud, weak, obsessive, cake eating, cosplay loving, stupid woman. But now, she continued to surprise him. She had been strong, self-dependent, witty, unafraid and dangerous. And now, he couldn't say she lacked femininity without someone raising serious questions about his sanity.

She was wearing nothing extravagant; a red dress that was tight till the waist and then spread out and ended just a little above her knees. She accessorized with nothing more than a pair of black strappy heels, her customary watch and a simple gold necklace. Her look was causal, but she carried it off with the grace worthy of a red carpet outfit, showing off her long legs and accentuating curves he never knew she had. But more than her outfit, the smile her face wore gave off a glow that not only made her shine brighter, but illuminated everyone else in the room. She looked..…beautiful. Yes, to Gokudera Hayato, Miura Haru looked absolutely beautiful. Something he never thought he'd think.

Kyoko and Chrome looked pretty too, in their blue and purple gowns respectively, but Gokudera didn't give them a second thought. All his thoughts were currently channeled towards one person.

"AAAAYYYEEE!"

Gokudera was shaken out of his trance.

"Hayato? Hayato! Are you there?!"

"Ye-Yes! Sorry, what is i- BAH!"

Gokudera felt his stomach give out and he doubled over as he came face to face with Bianchi.

"You're still such a child."

"Aneki! I still can't take it if you sneak up on me! You know that!" he said angrily.

"I didn't sneak up on you, silly boy. In fact, I've been standing here for the past five minutes asking you the same question but you were too _preoccupied_ to notice."

"Wha-whatever. What were you asking?" he replied with his face all hot. 'There. Again my face feels hot. What on earth is happening to me? Maybe I should have Shamal look at me….….Am I really in such a desperate state?'

"I wanted to ask you what you were trying to say. You kept muttering words like 'wait', 'hands', 'tear' and 'soft'. Care to explain?"

"I don't- I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Haaaaa? Why are you blushing?"

Click. 'Blushing? Is that what it is?'

"Don't be stupid! I'm not blushing! It's just hot in here that's all! Excuse me, I have to go find the Tenth!" words fell out of his mouth at the speed of a gushing waterfall. And with that, he stormed off from her and out the door.

"But…he's right here…."

(Gokudera's P.O.V)

I ran out the door and into the yard and came to a halt, my heart hammering against my chest and breath coming out in pants.

Aneki's words resounded in my head. I smacked my cheek. 'Pull yourself together, Gokudera. It's impossible. Suggesting that I'm blushing is mad enough, but blushing because of the stupid woman? Impossible! Absolutely Impossible.'

A slight chuckle made itself known in the darkness.

My eyes narrowed. "Who is it? Show yourself!"

"My my my. So you're ready for a fight at the drop of a hat but you run from yourself eh? Nice." Came a sharp voice, followed by the appearance of none other than Hibari Kyoya, the Vongola Cloud Guardian.

"Oh it's you. What shit are you spouting? I'm not running from anything."

"Oh yeah? Then you're out here for what, a late night stroll?"

"I could ask you the same."

He shrugged. "Too many people."

Of course. Hibari hated crowding and crowded places. So it was natural for him to be out here. But what about me? Why am I out here?

The former president of the Namimori Disciplinary Committee sighed. "You should act fast. Or you might lose your chance."

I froze. "What are you-?

"You know exactly what I'm talking about."

He sighed and turned towards the door, his hand waving at me.

"Don't take it for granted, herbivore. You'll regret it."

With that statement hanging in the air, he walked in.

I pondered over his words. What was he talking about?

….

Haru was thoroughly enjoying herself. Good food, good company, good music and VERY good alcohol. And with the crowd around them, that particular good component was disappearing rather fast. Already one-third of the alcohol was gone, and the party had only just begun. But they were the mafia after all, so alcohol supply was never a problem. But she had to hand it to them, they had amazing capacity. She was yet to see one of them anything more than slightly intoxicated. Except for one particular perverted doctor of course. HE had flown off the handle a long time ago. He was off, God alone knows where, probably hitting on some poor little girl who wandered within a 5 foot radius of him.

She looked around the room, trying to locate everyone from her family. Lambo and I-pin were passed out on the couch, her head resting on the cow's shoulder. It was hard for everyone to see how fast they were growing. Reborn and the others were growing too, but since they had always behaved as adults it wasn't that much of a difference. But the difference was more obvious to the eye in case of the other two. Instead of overalls, Lambo's cow fetish was now translated in the form of a printed scarf that he would never take off. Two things remained the same though; his capacity for making trouble and attitude towards Reborn. The difference in I-pin was more apparent though, her hair had grown and she had even begun to look like a girl. She had also learned their language and since then, she hadn't stopped talking. You knew there was something wrong when I-pin wasn't talking. Haru smiled. The two were probably exhausted after running around playing their wacky games.

Her eyes moved on and she saw Yamamoto dancing with Bianchi, a drinking contest between Spanner and Giannini, the result somehow being translated into who was the better engineer and Shouichi being harassed by Byakuran. A little farther she saw Chrome laughing with Ren and Chikusa, Hibari silently watching her every move from the shadows, sharp eyes following her every move, as well as Ren and Chikusa's. Her eyes softened upon the witnessing the scene. Everyone other than her and Kyoko had been surprised when it had happened. They, of course, had known it all along.

Finally, her eyes slid to Tsuna and Kyoko, swaying on the dance floor with her head resting on his chest. She smiled.

Years back, this scene would have broken her heart into small pieces. That was when they were in middle school. But since then, she had grown up. Back when they were 16, Tsuna-kun had finally gathered up the courage and told Haru that his heart belonged wholly and solely to Kyoko-chan. He had wanted her permission to ask Kyoko-chan to go out with him as her closest friend and close-to-sister, as well as her blessing. Now he had expected waterworks and sadness, but instead she had smiled him a huge toothy grin. To say that he was confused would be putting it lightly.

***Flashback***

_"Hahahahaha!"_

_"Haru? Are you okay?" Tsuna-kun looked at me as if I had grown a second head._

_"Of course I'm okay Tsuna-kun! Why wouldn't I be?"_

_"I just figured….."_

_"That I'd be heartbroken? Start crying? Blame you for ruining my life?"_

_He looked at her guiltily._

_I grinned. He really was dense._

_I waited for the giggles to subside, gathered my breath and started to speak, a smile on my face._

_"Tsuna-kun. I assure you, I'm very much okay. In fact, I'm happy for you! I realized a while ago that what I felt towards you was fascination and nothing more. You were the first boy I had ever spoken to and you saved me from drowning. You also made place for me in your life, took care of me and introduced me to people who now I can't imagine life without. I was a silly child who translated those feelings of gratitude and friendship into something that never was. And I am sorry to have put you through that. I know it was a burden worrying about me.' _

_The boy in front of me just looked at me in shock, taking my words in._

_"And come on give me a little credit Tsuna-kun. I've known for a long time how you felt about Kyoko-chan. Hell, everyone knew. And despite what that ape says, I'm not that dumb. In fact, I was wondering why you haven't asked her out yet. And now to find out you were doing it out of respect to my feelings…..I'm sorry Tsuna-kun. I have behaved stupidly. I didn't want to hold you back."_

_He just smiled at me. _

_"So you're really okay?"_

_I laughed. Of course. Selfless till the end. "Yes, Tsuna-kun. Now go! Go ask her out! You've both been waiting long enough!" _

_"Thank you, Haru! I will! See ya!" he ran, waving._

_*sigh*_

_"That was impressive. I'm quite surprised."_

_She turned around to see Gokudera Hayato leaning against the wall with his hands in his pocket, the signature roll of lung cancer in his mouth. _

_"Do you have to use that infernal thing? In school no less? And what on earth are you talking about?"_

_"Don't play dumb. You're dumb enough already. You managed to convince someone with hyper-intuition that your words are completely true. __**I**__ almost fell for it."_

_"I am okay. It's a blow to my pride, yes. But I'm truly happy for them. They belong together."_

_"That's not what I'm talking about."_

_A wave of surprise coursed through me. _

_"Well, then I don't know what you're talking about."_

_He merely walked towards the window and gazed at the sky. _

_"You didn't have to lie to him. About your feelings being nothing but friendship."_

_My mouth fell open in a very un-lady like manner. How did he know? _

_"I didn't lie. It was the truth."_

_He was looking at me now, trying to hold my eyes captive. "I said almost. You don't fool me."_

_"You're delusional."_

_After great effort, I broke the eye contact and walked past him, toward the door. When I reached it, I stopped._

_"Besides, if it sets him free and helps them be happy, what's the harm?"_

_She opened the door and walked out. She heard a sigh and a small whisper reached her ears. _

_"You really are a stupid woman."_

***End Flashback***

Of course, at that time it was still raw, so it had affected her a bit. But now, she felt nothing at all. Now, she felt the same way about Tsuna as she felt about Yamamoto. He was family and her 'feelings' were a thing of the past. But how Gokudera had known the truth, she had never been able to figure out. She hadn't told him for sure, nor anyone else. Then how?

_Ting_. A light went off in her head. She scanned the room. Speaking of, where was he? She hadn't seen him since he'd walked away from Bianchi.

'Where is he? Maybe he's still off sulking somewhere.'

"Hibari-san! What are you doing?!" came an alarmed voice.

Haru turned to face the owner of the voice and spotted an alarming scene. Hibari was in an offensive stance facing Dr. Shamal, a tonfa at his neck, flanked by Ren and Chikusa. The Cloud Guardian was emitting a dangerous aura and Chrome, standing behind him, was alarmed and confused at the sudden change in atmosphere.

"Hibari-san! What's wrong?! What on earth are you doing?!" Tsuna's panicked voice echoed in the massive hall. There was pin-drop silence. No one moved a muscle.

"I warned him. He wouldn't stop." the guardian replied in an icy voice.

"Wouldn't stop what?!"

"I warned him to back off. Instead, the bastard touched her." he responded in an icier voice, tonfa now digging into the doctor's neck. Ren growled and Chikusa shifted his glasses.

Gasps and sighs were heard all around, coupled with the smack of a palm connecting with a forehead. Shamal had just made an incredibly daft move. Everyone knew that flirting with Chrome or even looking at her in a foul way incurred the wrath of the Cloud Guardian. And Shamal had just gone one step ahead of that. Chrome was the most precious thing in Hibari's life. And for anyone to make a wrong advance toward her was the gravest mistake in Hibari's book; one whose punishment had no ethical limitations.

Bianchi sighed. 'When is that pervert gonna learn?'

"Kyoya. Calm down. There's no reason to get so murder-ey. He's drunk. He doesn't know what he's doing." Chrome was frantically trying to calm him down, and considering the situation, she was probably the only one who could.

"No. He needs to be taught a lesson."

Chrome drew a breath and steadied herself. "No he doesn't. He doesn't know what he's doing. Stop." He looked at her with a steely gaze and after what seemed like an eternity, he dropped the tonfa. Every one breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Fine. But if ever dares to try anything again, I WILL bite him to death. And not even you will be able to stop me."

"Kyoya."

"You won't."

She sighed. "Ren-kun, Chikusa-san, you too." Suddenly, she jumped, aware of everyone watching them. She turned around and bowed, her face hot. "Oh! I'm sorry for the disturbance everyone! Kyoya! Say you're sorry!"

"Hmph."

"Kyoya!"

The audience broke out into laughter. And just like that, the tense atmosphere vanished. Haru laughed along, their actions never ceased to amaze her. 'Wait. What was I thinking? Oh yeah. Wait. Why am I thinking about him anyway? Snap out of it, woman.' She shook her head and approached Tsuna and the others.

What was that saying about taking the devil's name?

Gokudera entered the hall, marched past them and went straight to the booze. An alcohol aficionado, he didn't like shots considering them to be an insult to the brewers who would put so much fine skill into each draft. He preferred to sip his drink and admire the rich and varied taste with every sip. But contrary to everyone's expectations, and his own, he downed his drink in one straight gulp. And another and another and another. Haru looked at him with a furrowed brow, his behavior confusing her. He then walked back towards them, hair shadowing his eyes. The whole thing oddly unsettled her. She shook her head for the second time.

"Oh Haru! Just the person I wanted to talk to!" Yamamoto waved at her, his face glowing. His expression was similar to that of a little kid who'd won 10 candy bars.

"Yes Yamamoto-kun?"

"How did you manage to get that picture for the glass case? The one in the shape of my father and me? I'm pretty sure I never got around to showing it to any of you."

"Oh that! That's a trade secret." She winked at him.

"Haru! Come on!"

"No! Would you ever ask a magician to reveal his secrets? Same principle. You don't ask Haru how she manages her decorations." A proud smile shone on her face. Two pairs of eyes stared at each other, one inquisitive while the other defiant. Then Yamamoto did something unexpected. He hugged her and lightly whispered in her ear,

"Okay, Miss Decorator. Regardless, thank you. It's the best." She smiled to herself. Guess he really had liked it like she'd hoped he would. Yamamoto Tsuyoshi's demise had been a blow to them all, considering he had been a father-figure in their lives, but it had nearly torn down his son's spirit. Unlike what they had seen in the future, his death wasn't brought around by Byakuran, but by a heart attack instead. Despite the doctors' best efforts, they had been unable to save him. It had been unspeakably painful, but his hero's demise had strengthened the desire in him to protect the ones he loved. It was also what had driven him to finally choose the path of the sword, though he had never left baseball behind. After a minute, they broke the hug. Haru smiled, her eyes warm.

"You're most welcome."

_"Having fun I see."_

She heard a low voice from behind her, barely a whisper. A voice she knew too well. She turned swiftly but the silverette had already gone towards Tsuna and stood leaning against a wall partially covered by the shadows. He was facing her direction and she could clearly feel his eyes, boring holes into her skull. She looked up to meet them, immediately regretting her mistake. She couldn't move. Her palms were sweaty, head felt heavy and her heart was racing.

"Are you okay Haru-chan?"

She regained control over he senses and turned to see Kyoko standing there looking at her with a worried expression. She probably looked like she had seen a ghost. She smiled at her friend, though she was sure it wasn't convincing.

"Ah yes yes! I'm fine. We should bring the cake out now. Everyone's been waiting long enough."

Kyoko didn't look convinced but she let it slide. Based on what just happened and Gokudera's expression, she had a hunch about what was going on. She decided to leave it alone and let fate take its course.

Haru was only half paying attention to what was happening. Everything was a blur; Yamamoto's expression when they brought out the cake, everyone's reactions, the 'Happy Birthday' song, everyone painting his face with cream, Chrome and Kyoko's' "banzai" when everyone liked the cake, her own "banzai" barely audible. She couldn't focus on anything as her mind went over and over those four simple words that shouldn't have been bothering her at all, but in truth were dominating her every thought. She felt drunk; aware of her actions but not having any control over them. She was, however, acutely aware of two things; her raging pulse and the fact that the storm guardian's eyes hadn't left her for even a second since his back had touched that wall. And it was that very fact that was contributing to her current state.

'Oh God. Oh God oh God oh God. What is happening to me? Why won't my heart stop racing? I feel light-headed all of a sudden. In fact, my head feels heavy and I'm getting all dizzy…..' That's when she realized she was holding her breath. She exhaled loudly, painfully too. 'God, Miura. You need oxygen to breathe, remember? Get a hold of yourself already.' Even though the now freely flowing oxygen had made the dizziness go away, her heart was still running at a thousand miles per hour. 'Okay, deep breaths. Calm down. Deep breaths..that's it..it's working…deeeeeeeep breaths…' She chanted the mantra repeatedly in her head until she started to see some positive result.

'This feeling..it's familiar somehow. It's like how…..' She inwardly gasped. She looked at the spiky haired man who was smashing cake on Yamamoto's face. 'No way….like how…with him?!'

"Having trouble with your breath there?"

Haru's eyes widened as she felt a towering presence behind her. "What do you want?" she spoke carefully, her voice low.

"Nothing really."

"Then why are you acting so…strange?"

"Strange and eccentric is your job. I'm just more _aware_." She was almost completely sure she heard a smirk in his voice. But in her inexplicably frazzled state, she couldn't be sure whether she was right or just suffering a mental breakdown. Either way, he had reeled her in. It didn't take much to spark Haru's curiosity and the bastard was using it to his advantage, being all cryptic. She gritted her teeth.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"You already know. Don't behave stupider than usual."

"I do not ask questions to which the answers I already know." Her eyebrow twitched. Not only had he called her stupid, _again_, he had questioned the integrity of her question too. Ass.

"I had an epiphany. One that I'd never ever thought I'd have. Another and this hall will see its second explosion of the day_._ And I promise, this one shall be both deliberate as well as accurate" Her body automatically tensed as his torso touched her back, surprised by the sudden move. A small whisper tickled her ear. ". See, I don't share. Don't say I didn't warn you, _Haru-chan._"

She staggered on her feet as the presence behind vanished. Her head was swimming.

'My…name….'

**Author's note: I hope you liked it. Reviews and constructive criticism are very much welcome, if you get the chance. Thank you for reading. :)**


	4. The forecast calls for Stormy skies

**Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! or any of its characters. All rights and works belong to Amano Akira.**

**Author's Note: Thank you all for the reviews as well as for following this little fic. You have my gratitude. **

**"Stop it!** Stop, I say! Get off me!"

"Nope. You had it coming. Besides, I'm enjoying it. So why would I stop?"

"Because I'm nowhere close to enjoying it!"

"Like I care about that. I'm being very soft you know. See, this could be a lot worse. So be happy about that."

"Hibari!"

"Yeah, saying my name is going to inspire me to stop eh. So smart."

"Cut it out! Chrome-chan! Help me! See he's wasting cake too! Heeeeeeeeeeeeelllpppppp!"

*sigh*

'There he goes again. What the hell is Kyoya doing to him? Well, whatever it is I don't think I can keep pretending I can't hear him for much longer. _Everyone _can hear them. God damn it.' She took a deep breath. 'Yosh. Here I go.' She turned on her heel and approached the loud noise, coming face to face with a _hilarious_ scene.

Yamamoto was flailing his arms around in the air while Hibari was smashing piece after piece of cake on the birthday boy's face, his eyes shining with mirth. Chrome sweatdropped at the ridiculous scene before her. Even though they were all adults now, her family never ceased to act like children. NOT that she was complaining. She took a deep breath and prepared herself for the whining she knew would follow.

"Yes Takeshi-kun? You called?" she smiled sweetly, feigning surprise.

"Chrome-chaaaaan! Help meeeeeee! His eyes shone with tears of joy.

"You told on me, herbivore. How pathetic. Grow a pair." Hibari pulled said herbivore's cheeks viciously, merely acknowledging Chrome's arrival with a glance.

"Chrome-chaaan! Get this demon of yours off of me please!"

"Hai Hai. Kyoya, let Takeshi-kun go. Now."

"Don't want to."

"Oh don't be a child. That cake was made for Takeshi-kun to eat, not to paint his face with."

"This is better."

"Give me the damn cake, Kyoya."

"….No."

"Okay then, suit yourself. You know, I wonder how Kyoko-chan and Haru-chan will react, seeing as they put all that effort into making the cake….and you're wasting it."

The Cloud Guardian stopped in mid-air as he turned to face her, a blend of irritation and wariness coloring his face, no doubt in the middle of a flashback. He lowered his arm slowly, dropping the innocent piece of cake in the waiting girl's open palm. Chrome grinned, victoriously flashing her teeth at him. Yamamoto laughed, free at last. "Hahahaha! Thank you Chrome-chan! I'm freeeee! In your face, Hibari! In you-"

SPLASH! He was abruptly cut off by a hand connecting with his face, dead center, a piece of cake wedged between the two.

"No Takeshi-kun, in YOUR face." Chrome smiled cheekily, mischief dancing in her eyes. "Sorry, Takeshi-kun, I just couldn't resist. Plus, I made the cake so I can so what I want with it right?" Hibari smirked, clearly pleased with Chrome's strike. Yamamoto growled.

"If the two of you don't go to hell, I'll put you there myself."

"**Bring it**." The pair spoke in unison, evil smirk mirroring the others. He gritted his teeth at the duo.

"…..I hate you both."

There was one small spot in the grand hall, where the jovial atmosphere was completely lost. And in that spot stood Haru, her head spinning and heartbeat thudding in her ears. Her eyes were blank and clueless, as a daydreamer's would be. But Haru's state of mind was far from a dreamlike one. Instead, inside raged a hurricane with crashing waves of confusion and anger, making it impossible to focus on anything. She was lost to her surroundings, completely unaware of anything but her own thoughts. A thousand questions raced through her mind, answers known to none.

'What the hell was that? What is going on? What was he talking about? What am I feeling? Why does this feel so familiar yet so different?'

He was responsible for this. He was the reason for her current situation. His words, the captivating storm in his eyes, his voice, the firm but slightly miffed tone it held, his breath against her ear, everything. For the first time in her life, she couldn't understand herself. She couldn't form coherent sentences, she couldn't control her reactions, she couldn't make sense of her own feelings. For the first time, her logic had abandoned her and left her vulnerable in the darkness. Even in the worst of times, her heart had always been with her, guiding her, reminding her of her strengths and weaknesses, reminding her who she was and who she could be, showing her her own potential. She couldn't find it anymore, in a situation that shouldn't have bothered her in the first place; which pissed her off to no end. She shook her head violently.

'Okay this is absurd. This is not who I am. What am I doing? Calm down. Try and make sense of the situation. You are neither a wallflower nor a damsel in distress, Miura. Get a hold of yourself. It's just Bakadera. Think calmly.'

With that, her heart began to make its way back to her. Sense returned and she managed to calm herself down. With that, she began to think. His words ran in her head over and over again like a broken tape recorder. What had he meant? "_I don't like to share." _Share what? She didn't remember borrowing anything of his.

'Argh! This doesn't make any sense! Am I going crazy? He doesn't have that sort of effect on me. Hell, no one has had such an effect on me since-'Her eyes widened at her own conclusion. 'Wait, what?! No no no no no no no no no NO There's no way it's similar to Tsuna-kun. Not _him._ That's absolutely impossible. He's an ape. Tsuna-kun was awesome. Besides, it doesn't even feel the same. Not exactly. Maybe it's the alcohol. Ahha! That's what it is! The alcohol! It's alcohol inflicted loneliness that's all. Kyoko-chan has Tsuna-kun, Chrome-chan has Hibari-san and Takeshi-kun has Bianchi-san. Oh WOW, was that a surprise. I mean, who in their right senses would have ever guessed that those two would end up together. They are cute though. With the way Takeshi-kun is, I guess it's not that weird that he would like an older woman, especially since- Oh Good God, FOCUS would you! Anyway, the point is that everyone has someone and that just got to me! Alcohol does that kind of shit to you. That's all it was. Right?'

Her eyebrows scrunched up and a crease appeared on her forehead. 'Wait, that's odd. Alcohol may have played a role for me, but what about him? That much isn't anywhere near enough to have an effect on him. The guy's a bottomless pit when it comes to booze. Then why was he acting so weird? Saying such odd stuff. He got all volatile and murder-ey when I hugged Takeshi-kun. Just like how..Hibari….san….WHAT?! Woman, have you lost it? Hibari-san is psycho possessive about Chrome because they're them and he's crazy about her! Don't be absurd. That walking smoke machine doesn't care whether or not I _exist_. Wait, maybe he likes Takeshi-kun. I mean, he_ is_ constantly annoying him like how a little boy in kindergarten teases a girl and calls her names because he likes her. AND it could explain why he has such a problem with Bianchi-san. Yeah, maybe he's going 'That bitch! She stole my man!' in his head all the time. Ooooooooooookkay, now you've shifted to bad Shoujo Manga plots, yaoi at that. You're so hopeless, Miura.' She pinched the bridge of her nose. What had she been thinking about? Oh yeah, his reasons.

As she stood there consumed by what seemed to be a hopeless venture, she felt a soft tap on her shoulder.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Startled out of her reverie, she turned to the direction of the smooth voice to see a young man, probably her age, standing beside her. He was about a head taller than her with sandy blond hair and blue, twinkling eyes. His lips were carved into a soft smile. On the whole he was quite attractive, but it was the gentleness in his eyes that fascinated Haru. She smiled back.

"Depends. Do you enjoy wasting money?"

"Oh I would hardly regard an investment as a waste."

"You're good with words. Care to indulge in an introduction?"

"My apologies. I'm Leo. Pleasure to meet you." He bowed while introducing himself, something which surprised Haru. It had been a long time since she'd met someone who knew what manners were.

"I'm Haru. It's a pleasure to meet you too. So, what are you doing here Leo? Other than the obvious?"

"Gathering up my courage."

"May I ask what for?"

"Well, there's this girl who I'd like to ask to dance. But she's completely out of my league so I'm afraid I might upset her. Hence I'm nervous. Got any advice?"

Haru looked over at him and smiled. Judging by the creases on his forehead he wasn't lying about being nervous. "Well, you're in luck. It just so happens that I give first-class advice. In my opinion, suck it up and go for it. You won't know till you try right? Besides, for a guy who mulls over asking a girl to dance, no one is out of his league. It's sweet. I'm sure she won't turn you down."

"You really are good at giving advice."

"It's a universal truth."

"Hmm. So I can take that as a yes then?"

"Huh?" A hand appeared in her field of vision. She looked up at him, confusion on her features.

"Would you do me the honor of sharing a dance with me?"

Haru just stood there for a few seconds, a blank expression on her face. She blinked a few times before a smile slowly broke out on her face as she began to laugh. Leo laughed along with her as they disturbed the mood around them. The laughter gradually faded as they each took a deep breath, earning curious glances from various onlookers in the process. Haru studied Leo further with an amused expression on her face. She was right; he did have a way with words. Usually, nothing but her family's antics made her laugh like she just had.

"You're funny, I'll give you that."

"That I am. But you didn't answer my question." His hand came up again. "Would you dance with me, Miura-san?"

"I'd be happy to." She took his outstretched hand and let him guide her to the dance floor. She had been so deeply lost in thought that she hadn't even noticed that the music had come down to a slow pace until Leo had startled her. What she had been thinking about, she couldn't remember. Her mind was still consumed with laughter. She suddenly felt a hand on her waist and realized they had come to a halt. He lifted their hands in mid-air, prompting her to place her free hand on his shoulder. She half-expected to trip or step on his feet when they started moving but to her surprise, his lead was such that she didn't. She had taken dancing lessons once but had only resulted in disastrous consequences. Some that involved two pairs of injured feet, a trip to the hospital, a minor head injury, a couple of broken artifacts and three exhausting nights of acute sleeplessness for everyone in the Vongola mansion. Keeping that in mind she tried to be extra careful with her current dance partner. Realizing she must seem completely spaced out, she tried to make conversation to lighten the mood but the fact that she had to look up and that he was quite close to her made it difficult.

"So you're good at dancing too?"

He snickered. "Well, I've had practice. Dino-san is quite adamant about me attending such events. He says I need the practice."

"Dino-san? You know him?"

"Yeah, he's my boss."

"You're from the Cavallone family?!" Haru blurted out her words before hurriedly biting her lip, realizing she had been too loud.

"Sorry. It's just a bit surprising."

"Hahaha. That's quite alright. My brother used to work under Dino-san. Our parents passed away when I was a boy, so it was just us both for a long time. When I first met the man my brother worked for, I was scared. Scared of angering him, scared of embarrassing my brother, scared of what he would think of my brother. But, Dino-san being Dino-san knew everything about me and our rough childhood. When my brother passed away, the world had ended for me. But Dino-san took me in. He welcomed me with open arms, raised me and made sure I had a good education. He made me his family without a second thought. I owe everything to that man. It may sound childish, but he's my hero."

"It doesn't sound childish at all." Surprise dawned on his face as he gave her a questioning look. Haru smiled at him, his story creating a feeling of warmth in her heart. "I know exactly what it's like to have a hero. Long ago, I also was saved by someone." Her eyes drifted to spiky haired man and a little boy with a hat, the latter pointing a gun at the former who had his hands high up in the air, terror shading his face. Her eyes drifted back to Leo's face as she smiled at him. "Someone who showed me the path to my family, someone who made me belong." She felt a slight pressure on her hand but it disappeared almost instantaneously. He twirled her slowly, catching her firmly so she didn't stumble or fall. Firm, but yet gentle.

"I'm glad you understand." A toothy grin broke out on his face. "Of course, he nearly fainted when I told him I wanted to officially become a part of the Cavallone Family, and thus by extension, a part of the Mafia. He went on a whole rampage about how dangerous, horrible and evil the mafia was and how it would totally ruin my life. Only when I reminded him that he was a Mafia boss, had done so well in raising me AND that my brother had been under him and couldn't have been happier did he calm down. It took him 1 whole hour of conflicted deliberation to finally let me join as Mafia. Even then, he gave me silly errands to run and till date he makes me attend every aristocrat's party. He says it's to learn about different people but I know he just wants to keep me from the real fun."

The image of Dino-san fainting was something Haru could picture very well. She laughed. "Yeah that sounds like Dino-san all right. He cares deeply for his family and is against anyone coming within harm's reach. If it were up to him, he would fight every enemy himself. He'd definitely lose though, without any of his family members present around him." Haru remembered the scores of injuries he would inflict onto himself every time his family wasn't around.

"Ha-ha yeah. I remember the first time I saw his fighting style when he was all alone. Hibari-san had taped it without his knowledge and sent it in the mail as a gift. He almost cried when he found out that he had been tricked. I've met Hibari-san and Sawada- san before. I've met Chrome-san too when Dino-san asked for her to come over because Hibari-san was torturing him. It was quite hilarious actually." He chuckled before looking at her sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I'm only going on about myself. You seemed to be deep in thought earlier. May I ask what about?"

Haru mentally slapped herself. 'Damn it! I completely forgot about my goal! Wait, what was it again? Oh, yeah. That.' Her mouth slowly closed as her smile faded away. Everything she had been pondering came rushing back, coloring her jovial mood. She tried to discard those thoughts away, determined to not let that fool ruin her mood. 'No one tells me what I can and cannot do. No matter what their reasons.' She took a deep breath. "Oh nothing important. Come to think of it, I've never seen you before. Why is that?"

He laughed. "That's because this is the first Vongola event I've attended. I somehow managed to excuse myself out of some. Although…" he twirled her once again, this time pulling her closer than before, their torso's touching. He looked her straight in the eyes and Haru thought she'd forgotten how to blink. "If I'd known someone as beautiful and charming as you would be there, I'd have come in a heartbeat." His gaze gave her goose bumps, eyes seemingly searching hers for the soul they sheltered. The blue irises held hers firmly, but like everything about him, they were gentle at the same time almost imploring her to keep the contact. This very gentleness, so very different from everything she'd ever known was what stopped her from looking away. While the silent connection was something she'd hoped of experiencing one day, there was something about it that felt wrong to Haru.

"Did I say something wrong?" he softly whispered, a frown appearing on his forehead.

"No, not wrong. Just...New." Finally having broken eye contact, Haru measured her words carefully, unsure of what she truly felt like saying. Her mind was a mass of frenzied confusion, one part of it silently working on her previous conundrum while the other trying to make sense of the situation at hand. Today was oh so definitely not her day. She felt herself get turned again. Amongst the confusion she had forgotten that they were yet dancing.

'Oh right, still dancing. Get it together. You're being rude, spacing out so much.'

"Am I boring you, Miura-san?"

"No no! I'm sorry, I'm being rude. I tend to get distracted rather easily. And, please call me Haru."

The song ended and everyone broke into applause for the band. The duo clapped along followed by them bowing to each other. Leo took her hand and led her off the dance floor and near the champagne laden table. The gesture unsettled Haru, but she not enough for her to object. Accepting the glass he offered her, she silently drank the sparkling liquid, trying to revive herself in whichever way she could. She felt the glass withdraw from her grip instead replaced by a hand and her chin softly tilted so as to come face to face with her dance partner.

"Haru-chan you seem really distracted. Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing like tha-"

"Haru-chan? Are you okay?" Leo looked at her worriedly, as if she'd seen a ghost.

He wasn't that far off. Haru's line of sight went beyond him and zeroed in at a single point; blood. The clean floor was marred with shards of glass and drops of the scarlet liquid, dripping from the closed fist of the storm guardian she knew too well. Gokudera Hayato was standing in a corner, his body shaking, and blood freely flowing from his palm which held the remembrants of a shattered scotch glass. Haru's eyes zeroed in on his palm, panic rising within her at the sight. She looked up at his face only to see his hair shadowing his eyes. She looked around in the crowd; no one had noticed yet. Knowing Gokudera, she was sure he would keep it that way. Haru's panicked features turned back to Leo's, an apology written in them.

"I'm sorry but I have to go. Thank you for the dance!"

She did not halt long enough to hear his protest but instead shrugged herself out of his grasp and all but ran to where Gokudera stood. As soon she stopped in front of him, she felt her panic rise on seeing the true state of his palm. It was a lot worse than it had looked from far, other than the cuts caused by the glass there were also scratches that his own nails seemed to have caused. He didn't seem to have noticed her presence all. She paused to catch her breath and looked up at him in anger, a reproach ready on her lips. Her breath hitched when she finally got a look at his face, her statement lost into the abyss. Feral eyes and pure rage darkened his features, emanating hostility. In all the time she'd known him, never had she seen such a terrifying expression on his face before. Only then did she notice the tense aura around him; body shaking madly, fists clenched and anger radiating from every pore. His eyes were focused on one point, unwavering. She took a deep breath and shook him, trying to snap him out of whatever state he was in.

"Gokudera! Your hand is injured!"

No response. She shook him again, this time with more force. "Gokudera!"

"Get away from me." His voice came out in a seething whisper, reflecting the anger in his features.

"No." she said firmly. "Your hand is bleeding and there is glass stuck in the wound. You need first-aid." Haru was a little taken aback by his tone, but she refused to give up. She sensed the tension in the atmosphere increase significantly. Something about his stance struck a dull chord in her memory but she couldn't place it.

"I said, get away from me. Now."

"And I said no. I don't know what's wrong with you but I do know that that hand needs tending to. And I know you won't do it. So, move. Now."

She latched onto his arm to pull him out of the hall. She half expected him to shrug her off but instead he silently let her guide him out. The tiniest smile appeared on her face before disappearing at the sight of his hands. His nails had definitely done more damage than the shattered glass had. She saw Giannini at the doorway of the hall and quietly asked him to get the mess cleaned up before someone noticed it. She smiled to reassure him as he looked at Gokudera worriedly and continued past him, finally exiting the hall. The walk was solemn and silent as his anger did not seem to ebb by even an inch. She took a deep breath.

"How did this happen?"

No answer.

"What happened to you?"

Again no answer. Haru's eyebrow twitched. His demeanor was as if he wasn't in the same room with her. They walked in silence through the long passageway before coming to a stop. She opened the door in front of them and pulled him through into her spacious bedroom, the only place she could recall having a basic first-aid kit. She left him and began to search her room, rummaging through every cabinet and shelf to find the kit. After three minutes of coming up empty, she cursed under her breath.

"How the hell did it just vanish? I'm sure I kept it somewhere around here…..AHA!" Haru triumphantly pulled it out from under a stack of clothes in her closet. Preparing herself she turned and walked towards the mass of tension that was currently occupying the only chair in the room. In want of a seat, she kneeled on the floor to get a better look at the wound. She slowly tried to loosen up the still tightly clenched fist, as softly as she could. The thought of picking a fight appealed to her greatly, but in his extremely edgy state she thought it best to not make it any worse.

Any inclination she may have still held withered away as she got the full view of his wound. Haru gasped as she saw the extent of damage a single glass had done. Since she'd seen it in the hall his nails seemed to have dug deeper into the skin, causing more blood to gush out. Also, his clenched fist had pushed the glass shards further into his skin, creating deeper cuts. Judging by the tough and impenetrable quality his skin had acquired after the innumerable battles he had been through, it had to have taken an amazing amount of pressure to create wounds such as the ones his hands showed. Haru's head snapped up to look at him, eyes a mixture of anger and worry.

"Do you have any idea how bad these wounds are? This is not just a simple scratch! You've literally clawed into your skin!" despite her earlier decision Haru could not help but raise her voice at him, her anger showing through.

"I'm talking to you, you fool! Have you lost your mind?! What could possibly possess you to do this?"

Even though he continued to ignore her presence, she knew her words had gotten to him as he clenched his fists again. She swiftly grabbed his fingers, placing her hands on top of his instead, trying her level best not to brush against the wound. He stiffened.

"No you don't. Claw into my hands if you want to do it that bad. Otherwise, just stop."

The deafening silence finally getting to her, she grabbed his tie and pulled him forward, forcing him to look at her.

"I asked you a question."

"Let go."

"No."

"Don't test me, Haru. I won't be able to hold back. Let go." His voice, barely audible, held an edge to it. As if he was struggling with some inner demon.

Her eyes contacted with his. The first thing she caught was defiance and anger, but that she'd expected. What she hadn't was the tiny but clear inkling of pain she saw. There was another emotion that swirled in his eyes, something she couldn't decipher. Something deeper, darker and more raw then anger. She huffed and dropped his tie, silently setting to work on cleaning and bandaging his hands. Another drought of silence stretched on, the anger radiating from each almost tangible. Having finished the task of dressing the wound, she composed herself and started, her own voice barely a whisper.

"I don't know what your problem is or what's gotten into you but do me a favor and don't injure yourself anymore. That's all I have to say."

Haru got up and returned the first-aid kit to its original place. She straightened up, smoothed her dress and walked towards the door. The storm guardian had not moved a muscle. She paused in front of the door.

"See yourself out when you see fit." Haru's voice was quiet. She took a deep breath and turned the doorknob.

SLAM!

Just as the door had opened a few centimeters, it was forced shut resulting in a loud sound reverberating through the room. Haru's eyes grew wide as she saw a bandaged hand on the door in front of her. She felt an electric aura from right behind her, making the hair on her neck rise. Gokudera was standing behind her, torso pressed up against her back. His head was on one side of hers, cheek almost touching her temple and his arm on the other side of her head. She was stuck between him and the door with no means of escape. Her breath got stuck in her throat, coming out in short intervals. A low husky voice entered her ear, setting her heart on edge.

"I do have a problem. You."

**A/N – Thanks for reading. Next chapter I'll be putting a bit more of Gokudera's P.O.V. I hope you liked it. Constructive criticism is always welcome. :)**


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